Royal British Legion Annual Conference 2011

Annual Conference 2011 was at the Telford International Centre, Shropshire on Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 May 2011. 

Videos of conference proceedings are available here.

For photos from the conference, please email photographer John Rifkin (jrifkin@btconnect.com) with your request.

Motions considered at this year's Conference are listed below.

Charter motions

CHARTER MOTION 1
Page 2, Article 2 (a), line 2 and Article 2 (b), line 3, delete "16" and insert "17".
Page 9, Rule 3, line 1, delete "16", insert "17".
Page 10, Rule 6, line 1, delete "18" insert "17".
Over Wyre, Lancashire
Effect if passed: It would clarify which Membership Fee is payable for those between the ages of 16 and 18; Members fee or Youth Members fee.

MOTION CARRIED

CHARTER MOTION 2
Page 4, Article 3(e), after "commemoration" add "including the maintenance of individual war graves in public cemeteries".
Broomfield, Essex
Effect if passed: It would ensure in the minds of the general public, especially those who generously contribute to the Poppy Appeal, that TRBL really is the guardian of remembrance, assuring them that every person killed on active service, then laid to rest in a public cemetery, their grave would be maintained in perpetuity, giving comfort to the families of the bereaved.

MOTION CARRIED

CHARTER MOTION 3
Page 4, Article 3, replace full stop at the end of object 3(e) with a semi-colon and insert new object:
 "(f) to promote comradeship among beneficiaries."
Board of Trustees
Effect if passed:  An explicit statement that the Legion is committed to the promotion of comradeship amongst our beneficiary community, both serving and those who have served, is made.

MOTION CARRIED

CHARTER MOTION 4
Page 3, Article 2, delete "Dependant, spouse and children", and insert "Dependant, spouse, children and immediate family members"
Page 4, delete Article 3 (b) in entirety and insert: 
   "(b) to relieve need and protect the mental and emotional health of the spouses, children, dependants and immediate family members of beneficiaries who have died or been severely injured."
If the motion is approved, the Board of Trustees would be asked to insert in Governing Regulation 2, page 19, in alphabetical order:
"Immediate family members:  any parent, sibling or named next of kin of a beneficiary for a period of two years from the date of the beneficiaries' death or the date that they sustained their severe injury. Where an inquest is to be held into the death of a serving beneficiary, support may continue until the inquest has been completed."
Board of Trustees

Effect if passed:  The immediate family members of our deceased and severely injured beneficiaries would be eligible for relevant assistance for a limited time period of two years ie assistance connected with issues of bereavement, Service inquiries, coroners' investigations and caring for someone in hospital or rehabilitation. The impact of this limited expansion of eligibility represents a possible increase of less than 1% of our annual caseload.

MOTION CARRIED

CHARTER MOTION 5
Page 14, Rule 21, add at the end:
"Those branches with more than 1000 members may send further delegates calculated on the basis of one additional delegate for every 500 members over 1000 (as recorded on the national database)."
Riders, National Branches District
Effect if passed: It would not greatly affect the majority of Branches; however those that have a greater number of members would have a proportional voice at Conference.

MOTION CARRIED

CHARTER MOTION 6
Page 14, delete Rule 22, and insert:
"22. Branch delegates shall be entitled to attend, speak and vote at the Annual Conference. Only Branches which have:
(a) submitted, on or before the 31 August immediately preceding the Conference, their receipts and payments accounts for the previous financial year for Branches and their completed Form MS1 for the current financial year of the corporate body of the Legion and
(b) submitted, by the 31 March immediately preceding the Conference, the affiliation fee for the current financial year of the corporate body of the Legion are entitled to send a delegate or delegates to that Conference."
Page 15, delete Rule 30, and insert:
"30. The financial year of the corporate body of the Legion is from 1 October to 30 September, and for Branches, Counties and Districts is from 1 July to 30 June or such other dates as the Board of Trustees may determine from time to time."
Page 16, delete Rule 35, and insert:
"35. Each Branch must pay its affiliation fee annually to the Director General. The affiliation fee is calculated by adding together a specified amount for each Member and each Youth Member. The Annual Conference determines these amounts from time to time, to take effect at the beginning of the next financial year of the corporate body of the Legion."
GOVERNING REGULATIONS
Page 20, at the end of the second sentence of Governing Regulation 4 (b) insert: "of the corporate body of the Legion".
Page 20, in Governing Regulation 4 (d), after "financial year" insert "of the corporate body of the Legion".
Page 22, delete Governing Regulation15 (b) (ii) and insert "15 (b) (ii) Only Branches that have: on or before the immediately preceding 31 December submitted their completed Form MS1 for the current financial year of the corporate body of the Legion and their receipts and payments accounts for the previous financial year for Branches and by the immediately preceding 31 March paid their affiliation fee for the financial year of the corporate body of the Legion immediately preceding that 31 March are entitled to be represented at a meeting of the County/District Conference."
Page 26, at the end of Governing Regulation 35 insert "of the corporate body of the Legion".
Page 27, in the final sentence of Governing Regulation 37 (b), after "financial year" insert "of the corporate body of the Legion".
Page 32, in Governing Regulation 67, after "relevant financial year" insert "for Branches".
Page 32, delete Governing Regulation 70, and insert: "Every County/District Committee must, within 2 months after the close of the financial year for Counties and Districts, and within 1 month after an audit, send the Director General a copy of the accounts of the relevant Conference, together with the report of the independent examiner or the qualified auditor."
Page 32, delete Governing Regulation 71, and insert:"Within 2 months after the close of the financial year for Branches, and within 1 month after every audit, every Branch must send a copy of its accounts to its County/District and to the Director General, together with the report of the independent examiner or qualified auditor."
Board of Trustees
Effect if passed: The financial year for Branches, Counties and Districts will be changed to 1 July to 30 June with the first year end being 30 June 2012.

MOTION LOST

Motions

GROUP "A"  Welfare (External)

MOTION 1
This Conference requests the Board of Trustees to lobby HM Government through the Veterans Agency to lower the qualifying level of hearing loss from 20% to 10%.
Newcastle & Chesterton District, North Staffordshire
Reason for inclusion: Lowering the qualifying level will bring it into line with national averages for hearing loss.
Effect if passed: Currently a large number of people with severe hearing difficult do not receive the allowance and are therefore severely disadvantaged; reducing the qualifying level will reduce unnecessary hardship.

MOTION CARRIED

MOTION 2
This Conference is concerned about the 0845 telephone system used in HM Government Benefit Offices and asks the Board of Trustees to approach HM Government with a view to introducing a free phone service.
Shiregreen & Districit, South & West Yorkshire
Reason for inclusion: Calls are normally made at the peak period and  clients are invariably made to wait which can prove to be quite expensive.
Effect if passed: Ex-Service personnel often have difficulties when they first apply for unemployment benefits with either delays or even sometimes non payment of benefits. If it were a free phone line it would save them money which they can ill afford in the first place.

MOTION CARRIED

GROUP "B" General (Internal)
MOTION 3
This Conference proposes that members who pay by Direct Debit be allowed to pay their branch subscription over the year by monthly instalments.
Devon County

MOTION LOST

MOTION 4
This Conference agrees that the affiliation fee for Members (but not Youth Members) be increased to £16 per annum with effect from 1 October 2011.
Limavady, Northern Ireland
Rushden, Northamptonshire
Stowmarket, Suffolk
Stroud, Gloucestershire 
Devon County
Shropshire

Amended to read: This conference agrees that the affiliation fee for Members (but not Youth Members) be increased by £1 per year for the next six years.

MOTION CARRIED

The following Amendments were taken in reverse numerical order.

Amendment No. 1. Delete all after "increased" and insert "annually, starting on 1 October 2012, in line with the yearly increase in the Retail Prices Index."
Cosstessy, Norfolk 

FALLS AUTOMATICALLY DUE TO PASSING OF AMENDMENT 3

Amendment No. 2. Delete "to £16 per annum" and insert "by £1.50".
Great Grimsby, Lincolnshire

FALLS AUTOMATICALLY DUE TO PASSING OF AMENDMENT 3

Amendment No. 3. Delete all after "increased" and insert "by £1 each year for the next 6 years."
Ryde, Isle of Wight

CARRIED

Amendment No. 4. After "2011" insert "and increased annually thereafter in line with each 1 October yearly increase in the Retail Prices Index". 
Limavady, Northern Ireland
Devon

LOST

Amendment No. 5. After "2011" insert "and increased annually thereafter in line with each 1 January yearly increase in the Retail Prices Index".
Great Grimsby, Lincolnshire

LOST

Amendment No. 6. After "2011" insert "and increased by 2.5% each year thereafter".
Stroud, Gloucestershire

LOST

Amendment No. 7. After "2011" insert ", increased by £1 each year for the 3 years thereafter and then reappraised.
Worth and District, Sussex

LOST

Amendment No. 8. Delete "£16" and insert "£15".
Worth and District, Sussex
NB. If this Amendment is carried, 3, 2 and 1 fall automatically.

LOST

MOTION 5
This Conference requests all Conference Committees to ensure that 'Motions of Urgency' are always Motions that could only have been foreseen after Conference closing dates, and not routine subjects which had opportunities to meet deadlines.
Backbarrow & District, Lancashire
Effect if passed: Delegates will have fairer opportunities to vote, after full Branch discussions, although genuine urgent Motions need not be de-barred.

MOTION LOST

MOTION 6
This Conference requests that Members attaining the age of 80 years be excluded from any further increase in membership fees.
Long Crendon and Chilton, Buckinghamshire
Effect if passed: Branches will retain their older Members to the benefit of the Member, Branch and Legion.

MOTION LOST

MOTION 7
This Conference requests the term "Affiliation Fee" be changed to "Membership Fee".
Dickleburgh and District, Norfolk
Effect if passed: Members will feel that they belong to TRBL and hopefully take a more active part in its activities.

MOTION CARRIED

MOTION 8
This Conference urges the Board of Trustees to put in place free membership for all serving personnel in the Armed Forces.
Beaufort, Gwent
Effect if passed: Increased membership and money for TRBL when Forces Member leaves the Armed Forces.

MOTION LOST

MOTION 9
This Conference requests the Board of Trustees to reconsider their refusal to implement Charter Motion 3 of Annual Conference 2010, which was carried by 253 votes to 82.
Risca, Gwent
(Charter Motion 3 of Annual Conference 2010 reads as follows: 
'Page 13, Rule 15; 
Delete; "bearing in mind the recommendations if any of Annual Conference,"
Insert; "adhering to the democratic decisions of Annual Conference, except for anything illegal or unlawful,". ').
Effect if passed: All decisions democratically made by delegates at Annual Conference, except for anything illegal or unlawful, cannot be overturned by the Board of Trustees.

MOTION LOST

GROUP "C" General (External)

MOTION 10
This Conference asks the Ministry of Defence to allow members of the Commonwealth Armed Forces who have served alongside UK Armed Forces to be eligible to wear the UK Armed Forces Veterans lapel badge.
Calverton & Woodborough, Nottinghamshire
Effect if passed: Veterans of Commonwealth Forces will feel part of the brotherhood of Service veterans who on many occasions fought alongside our own Service men.

MOTION LOST

MOTION 11
This Conference views with dismay the imposition on 4 January 2011 of VAT on the construction of new war memorials and calls upon HM Government to withdraw this imposition immediately.
Stamford, Lincolnshire
Effect if passed: To enable groups more easily to raise the funds necessary to erect a war memorial without the need for an inflated sum to pay this new tax.

MOTION CARRIED

MOTION 12
This Conference requests HM Government to make it mandatory for local authorities to maintain, repair and protect public war memorials which come within their respective boundaries.
Stamford, Lincolnshire
Effect if passed: The present disgrace of public war memorials being allowed to fall into ruin would be halted and they would be maintained in the future at a standard deserving of their status and dignity.

MOTION CARRIED

MOTION OF URGENCY
This Conference requests the Board of Trustees to retract the Special Circular that is currently issue to Branches regarding the outsourcing to the Royal Albert Hall a new method of applying for tickets to attend the Evening performance of the Festival of Remembrance and revert back to the previous system of applying for tickets through Counties and Districts.
West Lancashire
Effect if passed: Applications for tickets for the evening performance of the Festival of Remembrance will revert back to the current system which is a tried and trusted, easy-to-operate system that, according to County Secretaries to whom I have spoken does not hold any great administraRegardless of which method is used, applicants for tickets must also be able to quote their Branch Title/Code and each person's membership number. In a time of financial restraint a decision has been made to change a tried, trusted and easy to operate system for obtaining Festival of Remembrance tickets to one that will, inevitably, be an increased financial burden upon those who wish to apply for tickets.tive burden upon them. It will save the additional costs that will be incurred to those members applying for tickets.

MOTION CARRIED